


The Three Adventurers and The Various Tales

by CaptMickey



Category: King's Quest (Video Games), Monkey Island, The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-10
Updated: 2019-03-31
Packaged: 2019-06-24 15:33:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 17
Words: 11,877
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15633588
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CaptMickey/pseuds/CaptMickey
Summary: Based on the webcomic of mine, The Three Adventurers, a compilation of various short stories of the trio and their adventures.





	1. The Cursed Book

Link was covering his face, the blush of embarrassment going all the way up to the point of his ears, while Guybrush and Graham were sitting clutching their ribs with laughter and tears streaming down their faces. In the pirate’s hand was a novel-sized journal that he somehow tripped over at a marketplace and figured that it would be a fantastic idea to give it back.

That was, until, he decided to read a random page and decided to pocket the book and read it to the others in front of a bonfire. 

“This is the definition of torture.” Link mumbled deadpanned. 

“No kidding, this is like watching the murder of the English language and the murderer is using the codename ‘Jenna’.” Guybrush said between laughs as he skimmed through the pages. “And YOU’RE the unknowing accomplice.”

“UGGGH!!” Link laid his back on the floor in frustration, unaware as Graham took hold of the book and continued looking through it. 

“Heh the descriptions in this is… questionable at best. And graphic. Very… very graphic and– oh God.” Graham stopped skimming and that giggling smirk slowly vanished to horrified grimace. “Ah… well, I um… ah… G-Guybrush?” Graham tugged on Guybrush’s sleeve. “You ah… might want to look at thi– oh God, I’m going to be sick.”

“Hm? What is it?” Guybrush asked as he took a look, reading the page and trying hard not to gag. “Oh God… OH GOD. THIS IS HORRIBLE.”

“What? What’s possibly worse then Zelda, a princess and a freaking SAGE, giving some nobody the three holy artifacts AND the OCARINA OF TIME?!” Link asked, his patience slowly diminishing and sat up to yank the page out of the pirate’s hands.

“WAIT LINK NO!” Guybrush began warning.

“NONONONONO LINK!!” Graham tried reaching out only to have Link’s hand on his forehead to push the brunet away as he read the page. The silence that lingered over the three of them was painful and could be easily cut in half as they saw the blood rush from the elf’s face, his eyes widening in horror before he finally spoke up.

“We need to burn this book.” Link mumbled, turning his head to look at the others. “Now.”

“Yup! Yes we do!” Graham nodded in agreement, “Guybrush?”

“BURN IT INTO THE CLEANSING FIRE!” Guybrush shouted.

Link tossed the book hard into the fire and they watched it burn slowly. 

“It’s going to take months till I get that imagery out of my head…” Graham groaned as he rubbed the bridge of his nose.

“I know what I’m having nightmares of.” Guybrush shuddered as he pulled his knees close to him. 

“Let’s agree to never speak of this ever again.” Link ordered.

“Agreed.” The two nodded.


	2. The Cartographer

The door chimed open as Guybrush walked into the building, dragging a reluctant Link by the scarf inside as Graham followed suit. 

“I’m telling you, we were fine!” Link argued. Guybrush whipped his head at Link and pointed an accusing finger at the elf while sporting a frustrated expression on his face.

“No. NO! We did things your way and that last map YOU got from that creep in tights took us in a freaking circle. For God’s sake, you nearly got Graham taken by those wooden goblin things to boot!!” Guybrush nearly yelled. 

“So many dekus…” Graham mumbled.

“We’re getting a better map!” Guybrush declared as Link pouted and crossed his arms. The store had nothing but maps, sextants, and compasses. And aside from the lack of weaponry, it was truly any adventurer’s dream store. Guybrush scanned the store looking for anyone when he heard mumbling from behind the counter and went towards it, dragging Link in the process. Ringing the bell, the trio heard a hard thunk against the counter as a short looking man wearing a monocle rubbed the back of his head, wincing in pain.

“Ugh… I should invest myself in a cushion or–” The short man began muttering. Guybrush’s eyes widen as did a grin as he recognized that voice.

“Wally!” Guybrush chimed happily, as the cartographer glanced up and smiled.

“Mr. Brush! Long time no see!” Wally greeted, walking around the counter as the two gave each other a hug. Graham and Link looked at each other before giving a shrug and glanced at the reunion. 

“Ah… a friend of your’s?” Graham asked, pushing his hat up a bit. 

“Oh! Right. Yeah! Guys, this is Wally, the best cartographer a pirate- or adventurer- could ask for. Wally, this is Graham and the nitwit elf over there is Link.”

“HEY!” Link frowned.

“Pleasure to meet you both.” Wally said as he shook hands with the two of them. “What brings you all here?”

Graham dug into his cape and pulled out a crumbled piece of paper and handed it to Wally, “We bought a map from a um… unreliable sort and kinda came to the conclusion it’s a dud. We need a map to lead us to the nearest port so we can head to Hyrule.” Graham explained as Wally looked at the map and frowned. 

“Yeah, no kidding. It appears to be a map of literally nothing.” Wally explained. Guybrush turned and gave an angry glare at Link who scratched the back of his head sheepishly. “I should have a map of your description somewhere, just a moment!” He left to look for the map, leaving the three to stand around the store.

“So… you two go way back?” Link asked.

“Yup. Ever since I first became a pirate. If there’s anyone I can trust with a map, it’s Wally.” Guybrush boasted proudly. “So if you ever need a cartographer, go to him.”

“And he can map anything?” Graham asked afterwards.

Before Guybrush could answer, Wally came out with a bundle of scrolls and placed it on the counter. “How about you ask him yourself?” Guybrush then said. Graham grinned and walked over to the counter. 

“So I just have to ask…” Graham started to say before taking a deep breath and randomly appearing in various placed, “How do you map every location ever? Have you been all over the world and how fast? Do you know the secrets of the universe to gain such knowledge? Is there a map that can only be seen if you say any magic words?!”

Guybrush, Link, and Wally stood in silence as Guybrush found himself cradling Wally.

“What just happened…” Wally murmured. 

“It’s his thing.” Guybrush and Link answered as Graham rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly and muttered ‘sorry’.


	3. Campfire Stories

"So there I was, out of deku nuts leaving my slingshot useless, my shield busted, and the only thing I had left was my sword.” Link said over the cackling fire. “They began to surround me as I held my only weapon, hoping that it would be enough for me to get out in one piece.” He stood up and posed each swing, “They kept blocking until I remember I could attack them both with on hit.” He stuck the twig out behind him, “I waited patiently as they got closer and closer, and then…” Link spun in a circle, causing the smoke from the fire to shift and posed dramatically. “In one hit, I was able to come out on top and get out of that dungeon in one piece!”

Graham applauded while Guybrush sat there wide eyed. 

“Whoa! That’s amazing!” Graham awed.

“What about you? You’re a knight, right?” Guybrush began asking as Link took a seat. “You must’ve been in plenty of adventures.”

Graham rubbed the back of his neck and let out a sheepish chuckle, “Actually… I’ve only recently became a knight, so the most of my ‘adventures’ was becoming one. Although there was this one time when I met Triumph.” 

“Triumph?” The two blonds asked. 

“Yeah, he’s my stallion. Oh, you two would love him, he’s adorable. Anyways, so way back when, even before I arrived to Daventry, this farm that lived a couple ways away from my home had these thieves break in and steal a litter of Triumph’s breed so they could sell for their own profitable gain. Because I come from a long line of knights, I couldn’t let that slide… so I went after them with nothing but my wit, a net, and a rope.” Graham began telling, “So there in the middle of the wood, I hid in the bushes watching the thieves who were lost thanks to my meddling–”

“What did you do?” Link raised a brow.

“Oh, I moved the sign to contradict their map.” Graham smirked. 

“Nice!” Guybrush chuckled.

“Heh heh… anyways, while they were lost, I set up the trap to hold them in place. Once it was set, I grabbed their attention and had them chase me only for them to trip over the rope and triggering the net to grab them.” Graham explained, standing up to show the gesture. “I didn’t have much time until they got out because I didn’t think about putting weights, so I dashed as fast I could over to the litter and had them head back home. Luckily, they were smart enough to know where to go when the thieves grabbed me. When suddenly, I was saved triumphantly–”

Guybrush and Link let out a groan.

“By Triumph, who charged and head butted them into each other hard enough over a cliff. When I went back, Triumph stuck by my side no matter how much I told them to stay… the owners were thankful that they let me keep him.”

The two blonds sat there in wonder. “No wonder you became a knight. It’s really in your nature.” Link grinned as Graham took a seat and scratched his cheek.

“Yeah… okay Guybrush, now it’s your turn to tell us a story from your youth. Being a pirate, you MUST have amazing adventures.” Graham said with a grin on his face. Link moved to sit closer, eager to hear the pirate’s stories as Guybrush rubbed the back of his neck.

“Ah… I have a library of stories…” Guybrush remarked. 

“Okay… how about your weirdest adventure?” Link shrugged.

Guybrush placed a finger on his chin before smirking. “Alright, it’s a story about how I got wrongfully accused for a bank robbery and how I managed to clear my name using my wit, a duck, and a prosthetic butt.”


	4. The Band... Attempt

“Remind me again why we’re doing this?” Guybrush raised a brow.

“Because it’s obvious.” Graham answered, “I mean think about it, you can play the banjo, I can sing, and Link can play God knows how many instruments.”

“Surprisingly not a lot… but who’s keeping tabs, really.” Link shrugged, leaning on a drum set.

Guybrush shook his head, “That’s not… that’s not what I meant. I mean, WHY are we trying to start a band?”

“Because we’re broke beyond all reasons and we could really use the money.” Graham countered. “We can only do so many odd jobs, and the last one we took barely covered the inn for all three of us.” He dug into his cape and pulled out the flyer, “If we can perform one good song and blow the roof off the place, that prize money is as good as ours!”

The two blonds looked at each other before having a skeptical look on their faces.

“And you think we can pull this off in less then seventy two hours?” Link asked. Graham nodded eagerly with a look of stars in his eyes causing the elf to sigh and throw his hands in the air. “Guess it’s worth a shot.”

“C’mon, Guybrush… you in or you out?” Graham asked. Guybrush stood there, eyeing the two before rubbing the back of his neck and shrugging. 

“Screw it. I mean, what’s the worst that could happen aside from loosing, right?”

“Exactly! So on three! One, two, three!” Graham counted down, cueing all three to begin but all that did was sound like a cacophony of noise and the trio immediately stopped playing when the door slammed open and a random stranger stared them down.

“EITHER YOU LEARN HOW TO PLAY OR YOU GET THE HELL OUT OF MY GARAGE!!” The stranger shouted at the top of his lungs before slamming the door close. There was a long silence lingering among them as Link cleared his throat.

“Maaaaaybe we should try as an acapella.” Guybrush suggested.

“Yeah.” Link and Graham nodded in agreement.


	5. The Puzzle

Eight hours. 

They were in that god-forsaken room for eight long hours. Link laid on the floor staring up at the ceiling as Guybrush sat on a crate with his head in his hands growling under his breath in frustration. Graham, meanwhile, was buzzing around the room happily poking, touching, pushing, pulling, and ever other verb imaginable the items in the room. How the young archer had this much energy was a puzzle in and of itself, but neither of the blonds were planning on tackling that.

“Link.” Guybrush managed to mutter after sighing.

“Yeah?” Link answered, not moving his head from the floor to look at the pirate.

“Did you ever imagine that this was how you were going to end? Death by puzzles?”

“No. Always imagined it either by old age or in an epic battle.”

“Ah.”

“You?”

“…Kind of.”

“Guys! Guys!!” Graham came running towards them, a massive grin on his face as he was practically bouncing in his spot eagerly looking between the two before going over to Link and pulling at his arm to try and stand the elf up. “C’mon! We can do this! We’re so close!”

“Nnnnnngh… I don’t wanna.” Link groaned. 

“We’ve been at this with no progress whatsoever, Graham.” The pirate complained. 

“Well… I mean, yeah. But where’s that sense of adventure?” The brunet countered.

“It died eight hours ago.” The elf mumbled, having only been sitting up thanks in part to Graham still holding on his arm.

“As did my patience.” Guybrush added, huffing at the end as he watched Graham tug at Link’s arm almost amusingly. “Besides, what can we do now that’s different then what we did hours earlier?”

Graham pressed his lip in thought as he placed a finger on his chin, tapping it in thought trying to think how to answer that. “We could… um…” He began thinking and a frown slowly forming. It was true that they thought of every possible way to solve the mysterious room after walking in and getting locked inside. They tried hacking, slashing, blowing up, climbing up, climbing down, and everything under the puzzle-solving sun but everything turned up to be a dead-end. 

The archer looked over at Link who’s head was far back when an idea clicked. “We just need to think of this from another perspective!” Graham grinned. Guybrush, while impressed by the brunet’s optimism, still raised an eyebrow in confusion.

“And that entails…?” Guybrush asked.

“Scoot over.” Graham gestured as he let go of Link’s hand, the two wincing when the they heard the hard thud the elf made as his head banged into floor. “Sorry!’ 

“It’s fine…” Link groaned, rubbing the bruised skull.

Guybrush scooted over, allowing the brunet to go on the crate and lie down on his back, his head now upside down as he looked around the room. A half hour passed when he realized that the puzzles weren’t really meant to be used, but rather it was in a particular position so that the room would be forming into an arrow.

“I SOLVED IT!” Graham pumped his fist triumphantly before rolling over, standing up. “I DID IT! I KNOW HOW–” The blood to the head caused the brunet to be dizzy, causing him to trip on top of Link who let out a pained ‘OOF’ as a result.

Guybrush, who was sitting on the floor watching this let out a snort.


	6. The Maze... Part two

According to the sign at the entrance of the maze, it wasn’t suppose to take more then a half hour- an hour tops.

And yet somehow, by some sheer form of unfortunate luck, Link, Guybrush, and Graham were well past the four hour mark in the midst of the maze, sweating at the blazing sun beating them down. Graham used his hat as a fan as Guybrush stood by watching Link hacking away at the bushes that did little to nothing. It wasn’t to say that they didn’t INITIALLY attempt to solve the maze the good ol’ fashion way…

it was just that by the two hour mark they figured they have long since passed the good ol’ fashion way.

“This… is ridiculous…” Guybrush panted, resting his hands on his knees.

“You’re telling me… I thought it was suppose to be an easy maze.” Graham frowned in agreement.

“I’ll… get… us… out… in… no time… HYAAA!” Link shouted as he continued hacking at the bushes. He squinted at the hole and smiled “Hey… hey guys, I think I did it! I think we can go throu–” Before he could finish his sentence, and to their surprise, it just magically grew back in place, nullifying all of Link’s work.

The three stared in silence with Graham dropping his hat and Link dropping his sword, his left eye twitching just ever so slightly. 

“Are… you… KIDDING ME?!” Link shouted at the sky before falling on all four hanging his head in defeat, “This is it… this is where it all ends. In this STUPID MAZE!” He pounded his fist to the ground while Graham and Guybrush looked at each other, unsure how to comfort the green clad hero. 

“Um… Link?” Graham tried to speak up, nervously walking to Link and placing a sympathetic hand on his back, “Uh… there there…”

Guybrush’s heart went out to the elf as he looked around for any clues to guide them out. “I um… I guess we continue walking then?” He winced. Graham looked over his shoulder and gave a nod as Link kept muttering how not even the Lost Woods was this cruel. 

With a nod, the pirate began turning left and following the path. There was a long and lingering silence before Guybrush spoke up once again, trying to lift up their spirits. 

“Hey… how messed up would it be if it turned out the hedges were sentient and were messing with us this whole time?” Guybrush laughed weakly. 

“That would be mean.” Graham answered bluntly.

Just as he said that, they noticed the walls shift slightly, turning their paths into a dead-end and the three stood there with wide eyes and their jaws slacked.

Link raised a his hand slowly to the hilt of his sword the drew it out. “I’m going to kill it.”

“LINK NO.” Guybrush quickly turned around and frantically looked at the elf.

“I WILL NOT BE CAPTIVE TO ANOTHER GODDAMN PIT.”

“IT WAS ONE TIME!” Graham tried holding Link back.

“ONE TIME TOO MANY!”

“LINK!!’

The attendants stood outside the hedge hearing the trio screaming and quietly walked away. Nobody had the heart to tell them that it was designed for kids.


	7. Recollection

It wasn’t everyday that they found a town to stay for the night, so when they were able to book a room for the night at an inn, the trio figured it would be fun to check out the town and the people’s lifestyle. After all, none of them knew when they’d get the chance to visit the town again. 

As they walked down the street, smelling the air of the freshly baked goods and roasting meals over the fire, Link tapped Guybrush’s shoulder and pointed to an exotic animal shop. “Hey, maybe we can find you a parrot.” The Hylian joked as Guybrush rolled his eyes.

“For the last time, not EVERY pirate has a parrot.” Guybrush sighed, “And besides, the last parrot I had was made out of pyrite gold.”

“See–!!”

“Pie-RIGHT, Link, not Pie-RHET.”

Link pouted and crossed his arms as Graham chuckled at their antics. He lingered a bit back and looked around the town, noting the locals and side-stepping from the children that ran by. It was nice to be out in the wild like a true hero… but seeing something like that reminded him why he wanted to be a knight in the first place. Smiling, he continued on his path when he heard a startled yell and froze in place looking towards the source.

The children there were bouncing as a street performer blew fire from his mouth.

_“Stalama!!” Graham frantically shook his head and pointed towards the opening, he’d rather him and his new best friend to come out alive and become knights together._

He continued staring wide-eyed, unable to move from his spot and shaking as his breathing speeding up and–

_The dragon opened it’s eyes and before Graham could even react, Achaka shoved the rope into his hands and proceeded to shove him away from the dragon’s jaw._

“Graham?”

“Graham!”

_He felt the wind get knocked out of him as his back hit the wall and watched in horror as the dragon latched onto the purple knight and he couldn’t do anything, all he could do was–_

Graham was stuck. He couldn’t move, his gaze unyielding and shook as he arms were stuck to his side. He didn’t even notice the pair of blonds that were holding him and calling out his name. He didn’t notice the pirate looking at him and guiding the young archer away from the street performer over to a quieter part of town where the Hylian stood guard making sure no one else was coming.

_“NO!!” Graham cried out as the dragon tossed Achaka’s body against the wall fatally. Grabbing it’s attention with his yell, he frantically started to climb up as it’s yellow eye stared at him ferociously._

“Deep breaths.” A voice called out.

Huh?

“Focus on me, Graham, alright? Inhale from the nose…”

That voice…

“Exhale from the mouth… everything is going to be alright.” Guybrush continued to instruct.

Graham shook but slowly the cave was disappearing and the vengeful yellow eyes were replaced with a pair of blue eyes, looking at him sympathetically. “Hey… take it easy, alright? It’s okay.” Guybrush spoke softly, a hand on his shoulder rubbing it soothingly. The brunet looked over and saw Link walking over to them with a scared but concerned look.

“You alright?” Link asked calmly. 

He tried opening his mouth to say something but croaked out nothing and shook his head as he wrapped his arms around himself, closing his eyes tightly. 

Link and Guybrush looked at each other before the Hylian knelt down beside Graham and wrapped an arm around him and rubbing his back soothingly. The pirate scooted him to be a bit closer to the archer so he could also join in on the small group hug, giving his shoulder a tight squeeze and a soft smile.

“It’s going to be alright… deep breaths, we’re right here for you.” Guybrush assured calmly.

His breathing only starting to slow down and the numbing feeling subsiding ever so slowly, Graham still felt his heart ready to burst. He was far from alright, and it was going to continue to take a while till he felt better, but if he was going to be honest? At this point in time, Graham was relieved that Guybrush and Link were by his side.


	8. Past and Present Memories

He was out of time.

The town was in chaos, some were trying to flee the town from the impending doom that was about to befall them while others stood there and accepted their fates. If they were going to die, they would rather be with their loved ones in their town. The face of the clock shook beneath his feet as Link stared up at the red sky, watching the moon descend into the Earth ready to destroy the land and feeling the burning heat radiating from the flames around him.

He desperately tried to yell to the Heavens for help, for anything, but it fell on deaf ears as he stood there alone and terrified.

It didn’t take along before he was engulfed in the fire.

Link shot up from his sleeping bag, sweating and shaking, his eyes were wide with fear as he struggled to steady his breathing and placed a hand over his chest, feeling his heart beating hard and fast. ‘What was that…?’ He thought to himself. Trying to gain his bearing, he looked around. He wasn’t in a town, he was in the woods. The bonfire was just a small dying flame and the moon… he looked up. It was just a crescent tonight. 

“Link?”

The blond turned his head towards the voice where he spotted Graham and Guybrush sitting close to him, the archer looking scared while the pirate was concerned. 

“You okay there?” Guybrush asked.

“You had us worried…” Graham added.

“I um…” Link gulped and wiped his face, feeling his hands still shake violently. “J-just had a bad dream.”

“That’s an understatement.” Guybrush remarked bluntly, causing Link to lower his hands and look at the pirate. “You were tossing around a lot and yelling for help. We thought something happened.”

“Oh… I… I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you guys up.” Link apologized, still riddled with nerves. He felt himself being draped with the red cape and looked at Graham who was giving a small smile.

“It’s fine. We all got something that keeps us up.” Graham said. “You… wanna talk about it? I was told by a reliable sailor that it helps to talk out a bad dream.”

Guybrush smirked. 

Link pulled the cape closer. Would it help? He looked between Graham and Guybrush, noticing them pulling their own bags closer to give the Hylian company and couldn’t help but give a small smile at the gesture. 

“I… I don’t want to keep you two up any more then I already did–” Link countered only to see a hand over his face.

“Stop. Keeping it bottled up won’t help. And I promise what happens here stays between the three of us.” Guybrush said. He shifted himself to be more comfortable and with his chin being held by his hand, “Alright… proceed.”

He didn’t want to talk about it, but they were insisting and were worried. There was some silence before Link spoke in a hoarse and quite voice. “I was in a town and… the world was ending because the um… the moon was going to crash into it… and I couldn’t do anything.” He recalled, trying to think if he saw a face on it and frowned, “I stood there and just… I just watched it happened. I couldn’t do… anything to save the people in that town except to stand there and watch everything being swallowed up in flames.” 

Any other time, Guybrush would have made a quip about how a moon crashing into the Earth sounded ridiculous and dumb but… the look on Link’s face said otherwise and he refrained from joking. Graham and Guybrush looked at each other. The archer quickly moved himself to sit next to Link as oppose to in front and wrapped his arms around him, feeling the Hylian’s shoulders sag slightly. 

Guybrush soon joined the hug pile as he started to feel slightly left out and heard Link give a sigh.

“It all felt so real too…” Link finished, shaking and lowering his head.

After some silence, hearing the wind and the crackling of the fire. Guybrush finally spoke up again. “You wanna know what I think?”

“Hm?” Link mumbled, Graham simply looked at Guybrush.

“I think the moon needs a good darning.”

Now Link also turned his head to look at Guybrush with Graham who looked at the pirate in confusion.

“A what?” Graham asked. 

“A darning. Like so.” Guybrush balled his hand into a fist and shook it at the crescent shaped planet. “Darn you, moon!” 

Link let out a snort while Graham gave a chuckle. Guybrush just smiled and looked at the two knights. “C’mon, give it a try. It’s not the same as like… punching it in the face, but you can ridicule and darn it to your heart’s content.” 

The two knights looked at the crescent, following Guybrush’s instruction and balled their hands and aimed it at the moon. 

“Okay, on three.” Graham then said, catching on rather quickly what Guybrush was trying to do. “One… two… three.”

“Darn you, moon!” The three of them said, as they shook their fists at the moon. 

A second later they all broke into a laughing fit with Graham asking Guybrush where he came up with such a thing. And while the pirate was giving a long and lengthy answer, Link was still giggling and felt his eye lids grow heavy once again. His head resting on the archer’s shoulder, he smiled at the company he was surrounded with, knowing that was another sign that what he saw was just a bad dream.

He wasn’t alone.


	9. That's What Friends Are For

He rubbed his face in frustration at the door in front of him. It was rather literally the only thing standing between the current ‘trial’ and freedom for the trio. The answer was right there in front of him. But even if he could (and he tried), he couldn’t open the blasted door as it was too heavy to do by yourself.

Let alone with a broken arm.

Guybrush looked at his arm that was not only in a sling, but bandaged tightly (and admittedly painfully) and letting out a sigh in frustration, recalling the event that led him into the predicament he was in.

_He kept dodging the mallet wielding monster as it shattered his sword to bits. His back against the wall, Guybrush began looking around for something… anything, to help him out in his predicament. To his left he saw Graham shooting arrows at it in an attempt to knock it’s armor off, and to his right he saw Link impressively dodging the attacks and swinging back two-folds, leaping around effortlessly like it was a dance._

_“C’mon, Threepwood. Think!” He muttered under his breath. Guybrush looked to the floor and saw the hilt of his sword. The blade was shattered, but what remained looked good enough to act as a terrible dagger.  
_

_Better that then nothing._

_Blue eyes looked up and the monster stepped closer and back at the hilt. That was his first mistake, as the monster saw his eyes constantly shifting. Guybrush pushed himself out and outstretched his arm to grab for the hilt and–_

##  _**C R A C K !** _

_He let out a loud and pained cry as the mallet was slammed mercilessly into his arm. Guybrush couldn’t feel his hand and panic overwhelmed him as he was pinned and in pain, warmth and chill ran numbed his body and all Guybrush was hearing was a high pitch noise and his heartbeat in his ears. Faintly he could hear his name being called out in a panic but everything afterwards was all a blur until he came to and saw the monsters gone and his arm bandaged with Graham and Link looking panicked._

He messed up.

And he was now dead weight to the other two adventurers.

“Guybrush?”

The pirate looked up and turned around, seeing Link with a worried look on his face and Graham next to the Hylian, sporting the same look. It was apparent to Link and Graham that Guybrush’s spirit and pride, much like his arm, was broken. 

“I-I got this. Honest. This is the answer, it’s just this… stupid door.” Guybrush tried brushing off. 

“That’s not it…” Link mumbled.

Guybrush attempted to move the door once again but slipped and hit his broken arm against the door, letting out a loud cry and wincing in pain as he gripped his upper arm in an attempt to lessen the radiating pain. “Dammit…” He muttered pitifully under his breath as he slid to the floor. 

An arm on his shoulder and another on his back. Guybrush looked both ways and saw the other two standing beside him. 

“Don’t push yourself.” Graham comforted. “Can’t have you breaking anymore bones on us.”

Guybrush frowned and Link took notice. “What’s eating at you, Guybrush? And don’t say nothing… there’s something and it’s written all over your face.” A pause. “And arm.”

The pirate just hung his head in shame. 

“Sorry.” Link apologized. 

Well, Guybrush thought, your arm and pride is already shattered, might as well come clean. The pirate took a deep breath. “It’s just… I don’t… I don’t want to be a burden.” Guybrush admitted. “I don’t have a weapon anymore, my dominant arm is broken, and now all I can do is think and hide. Some help I am…”

“But… but we need that.” Link comforted. 

Guybrush looked up in confusion. “What?”

“Think about it, so far in most of our adventures, you’ve been the one to think out the plans. Heck, even when you were captured you still found a way to help us by pointing out the behemoths weak spot!” Graham recalled. “You might not be able to fight now, but we darn well need that mind of yours.”

“We’re here to help, just… point us where to click on or what have you.” Link smirked, giving a light pat on Guybrush’s shoulder.  

He looked between the two and a small smile graced his face, he wiped his eyes with the heel of his good hand and nodded. Link and Graham helped Guybrush stand back up, making sure not to hurt him too much as he winced a bit in pain from the broken arm that was accidentally touched. 

“We’ll have that properly looked at.” Link promised. “For now, just point us what to do.”

Graham placed his hands on his hips and nodded confidently. Guybrush smiled and pointed at the door. “Alright, see that image of the narwhal? Turn it to the left and push, it’ll automatically turn back so you need to hold it in place as you move the door forward.”

The two nodded and rushed off to the door. He heard them mumbling who was going to do what and smiled as he saw the door slowly begin to open as they pushed. He fully grinned when they cheered and high fived before looking at Guybrush shouting that it worked.

His arm was broken and his pride was bruised, but his friendship with the two wasn’t hurt in the slightest.

And for that, he was grateful. 

“Now let’s go see me a doctor for this arm.” He said as he walked towards them out the room.


	10. Only the Fairy Best

The storm poured down hard on the three of them and their morale was diminishing surely. “This was a mistake.” Guybrush muttered as he panted for a breath. Staring at the heavily cladded armored being raising it’s axe high over it’s obnoxious head. “Big… big mistake…” 

“Not as big as that night with those merchants” Graham smirked as he panted. “At least it’s trying to sell us anything.”

“Eh… I guess?”

Guybrush felt a hand slapping his back and looked to see Link, sporting that dangerously quiet look he had whenever they were in danger. “Think we can handle this?”

Link just looked at Guybrush and nodded, charging at the suited being. 

“When in doubt!” Graham shrugged and followed suit. 

“Alright… round two.” Guybrush huffed and joined the charge. He ducked as the enemy swung it’s axe yet again, taking a swing with his cutlass against it but growled in frustration as his sword barely made a dent. Guybrush could barely keep tabs with the others as he was too focused on keeping himself safe. All he knew was that attacking blindly wasn’t working, and that they needed a new perspective. Find a weakness.

He jumped back and ducked, sweat mixing with the rain drops on his forehead as Guybrush barely avoided the swing of the axe. Gripping his sword and bracing for the next attack, the heavily armored being raised it’s axe once more to swing at the pirate but the sounds of the arrow deflected from it’s head grabbed it’s attention as it let out a snarl.

“Keep your eye on the birdie!” Graham taunted as he quickly moved away while the enemy yelled and began moving towards the archer. 

“Thanks for the assist!” Guybrush waved as he took a breath, realizing just how out of breath he was. Watching with slight jealously as Link effortlessly moved and swung his sword, looking like this was nothing. “Heh… show off.”

“Sheesh, what are you made of?!” Graham frowned as yet another arrow was deflected.

“Anti-arrow armor.” Guybrush joked.

“Heh, you know what? I wouldn’t be surprised if it was.” Another arrow fired, “Maybe it’s just that we’re rusty!”

It was too sudden for any of them to notice but it was that second that felt like forever. Graham let out a small and weak gasp and Guybrush watched in horror as the archer dropped his bow and was flung across the field into a tree, a trail of red following him. Chills coursed through him as he watched the body fall limp.

“N…not… not again…” Guybrush stared wide eyed, unaware of the Hylian who watched the whole thing with his mouth open only to have his teeth clenched in blind rage and diverting his glare at the monster before him, charging with a renewed vigor. 

Guybrush with shaking legs pushed himself towards Graham, slipping in the mud before carefully turning him over, seeing the archer’s eyes closed. “…Graham?”

_He remembered that destroyed science lab, trails of blood all over the place and seeing her against the moonlight… the sword pierced right through her and her life was quickly leaving her…_

Link held nothing back as he unleashed all of his fury on the monster, gripping the Master Sword tightly and slashing through the armor relentlessly until eventually the armor chipped away revealing the being inside.

“…Nngh…” Graham moaned in a weak and pained tone.

“Graham just… just hold on…!” Guybrush placed a finger on Graham neck, trying to feel for a pulse… any indication showing that his friend was still there and felt it faintly. “C’mon, stay with me… you can’t… you can’t leave us.” He barely heard the being let out a massive cry and a thud, let alone the foot steps rushing towards them and only hearing nothing but the rain pouring down and Graham’s weak breathing. 

“Graham? Graham! Graham c’mon… answer me…!” Guybrush started pleading. “Graham!!”

_He couldn’t do anything but be with her in her last few minutes of life, hearing her dying words before seeing her fall lifeless. And Guybrush couldn’t do anything about it but watch._

The Hylian looked over seeing the pale look on Graham’s face, Guybrush calling out to Graham and holding him. The pirate looked up at Link with a pleading look when they both heard Graham wheezing, blood from his mouth as he grew heavy in Guybrush’s arms. “N…no no, c’mon Graham just… just hold on… Graham!”

Link quickly reached for the bottle with the fairy inside, pulling it out and began pulling on the lid as Guybrush tried calling out to the archer, getting no response. His fingers shook as he kept tugging at the lid, but it wasn’t opening. He felt taunted and it was infuriating him. Hearing Guybrush whimpering and calling out their friend’s name made him feel useless and that infuriated him too. The Hylian kept on trying to take the lid off but it was jammed and wasn’t budging. 

“L-Link what… what are you doing?” Guybrush asked as he watched Link struggle, seeing that frustrated look on the elf’s face.

It wasn’t opening and Graham was… he was…

Gripping the bottle tightly, in sheer frustration, Link tossed the bottle down in desperation and the fairy quickly zoomed from it’s captivity towards the fallen knight, circling around him and enshrouding him in a bright pink light before eventually flying away. 

Link kneeled down next to Guybrush, disregarding the broken shards as both him and Guybrush watched Graham, waiting for a sign when he let out a gasp for air, shaking as he kept taking shuddering breaths and looking disoriented. 

The archer looked between the two of them, the fallen monster behind them with the Master Sword impaled in it, the very large scar across his chest, and the broken shards of glass surrounding them. He tried mouthing his thought, what happened, did they win, if they’re alright… but instead, Graham looked at Link with a sadden expression.

“Oh… you broke a bottle… those are hard to come by…” Graham sympathized. 

He was caught off guard as Guybrush pulled him up so quickly that both Link and the pirate could hug him tightly. Graham noticed the two of them shaking but welcomed the hug… even if he was confused.

“I can replace that…” Link said, his voice sounding hoarse. “But I… I can’t replace my best friend.”

“Yeah…” Guybrush agreed, sounding admittedly left out. 

Graham felt Link pull from the hug to look at the both of them, but the attention was mainly on the pirate.

“That includes you too, you doofus.”

“What? You can’t have more then one best friend, that’s the idea of best friend. Just the one.” Guybrush explained, wiping his eyes from the tear.

Link just smirked and wiped his face on his arm. “That’s stupid. You can have more then one… and you two are my best friends. S-so ha.”

Graham just smiled as the two bickered, feeling still drained from everything but at the same time… happy.


	11. A Close Call

“Why does this keep happening? Why haven’t we learned our lesson and NOT venture out at night in the woods?!” Guybrush complained as he stood along side the brunet.

“Because we could–”

“Graham. If you’re going to put a pun out now, I swear I will personally toss my–” Guybrush ducked. “–boot at you!”

“I think it fits the situation.” Graham grumbled under his breath. The monster raised it’s weapon over it’s head and with a cocky smirk, he reached for his quiver and stood wide eyed when he felt nothing. Double checking to make sure, he looked in his cape and grimaced. “Ah… bad news guys. I’m out!” 

“Out of what? Puns?” Guybrush quipped.

“No. I’m never out of puns. But I am with arrows.” The archer showed the empty bag, to which the pirate just stared dumbfounded. 

“I got this.” Link rushed in between the two of them and swung the Master Sword against it’s weapon and gritted his teeth, trying to hold his place in a battle of strength. 

Graham looked passed the fight, seeing the feathers of his arrows embedded in the dirt from where the enemy once was. “Gonna gather.” Graham told Guybrush and rushed around the two in the midst of the fight, not giving the pirate a chance to protest against the archer’s plan. 

Link held firm as the monster kept beating against his blade, determined to see the Hylian fall. From the corner of his eye, he spotted Graham gathering any arrow he had left and in that moment realized his stance weakened. And while not by much, it was just enough for the monster to kick the Hylian away. 

“LINK!” Guybrush called out, inadvertently grabbing the monster’s attention. He felt the rumbling of the ground as the monster took heavy steps towards him and with shaking legs started to move away only to trip over a rock onto the dirt, staring wide eyed as the monster looked down on the pirate. “C-clam dip…” He mumbled.

Groaning in pain, Link rubbed his head as it felt like everything was spinning. Shaking back into focus, he looked up when he saw Guybrush trying to crawl backwards away from the monster as it prepared it’s weapon to strike.

“No!” Link cried out and grabbed his sword, pushing himself up and rushed as fast as he could towards the fight. 

Guybrush saw the gleam of the blade and closed his eyes, bracing for impact. At least… at least this time he could brace himself for death, he thought. And as he heard the whoosh of the weapon…

He never felt the impact.

Instead, he felt a wind over him, hearing a loud battle cry that shifted to pain and then silence. 

Peeking with one eye, he saw the monster stumbling back before falling to it’s side and vanishing into smoke. Behind the creature, Graham stood with his bow held firmly as he rushed over calling out their names and to Guybrush’s side… his eyes widen in horror.

The Hylian laid on the floor, trying to grip the wound in his stomach and breathing heavily.

“N-no… no! LINK!” Guybrush pushed himself over to Link who cried out as the pirate attempted to move him.

Graham skidded on his knees to them and placed a hand on Link. “H-hey, stay with us! Just… just hang on!” 

He opened his eyes slowly, trying to turn his head to look at the two but felt exhaustion quickly creeping up on him and closed his sight. He just wanted to sleep… but… 

“Link, you have to stay awake.” Graham gripped Link’s shoulder. “I… you can’t leave too.” 

He looked up at Guybrush, desperate for an answer for a solution but saw the blond staring at Link, tears on his face. “G-Guybrush… there… there has to be something. Some way to help. We can’t… he can’t… he can’t go too…”

Guybrush shut his eyes and desperately wiped his face. ‘Get over it. There’s still time.’ The pirate scolded himself. ‘Think!’

Looking at the archer who was now pleading with Link to stay awake, he recalled how not too long ago, Graham had a similar encounter. And Link was… he was able to…

“Give me your cape.” Guybrush mumbled.

“What?”

“Y-your cape. Give me your cape. I… we can carry him that way. We can’t move him now.” Guybrush explained before his composure shifted slightly. “Graham, we don’t have time!”

With shaking bloodied hands, Graham removed his cape and placed it down. “O-okay, now what?”

“Help me move him.”

“B-but… but what are we going to do?!”

“Fairy Fountain… remember how he talked about that? That… that place where it should heal everything?”

Graham nodded and quickly caught on what Guybrush was getting at.

The two carefully lifted the Hylian up who let out a pained cry as he was lifted up to the makeshift gurney that Guybrush was able to create. With caution, Guybrush and Graham lifted Link up who moaned. 

“Just hang in there a little bit longer, Link…” Graham pleaded as the two began to venture. They tried to remember what it was suppose to look like, trying to remembering how Link described the telltale signs of a Fairy Fountain when Link stirred. 

“Link?” Guybrush looked over his shoulder, seeing that Link has in fact been awake and staring up at the stars above them.

“…I just… I want this… this life… to count…” Link trembled as he closed his eyes. “I… wanted this life to matter…”

“It… it’ll matter, Link you just need to hold on.” Guybrush desperately tried to sooth but it felt it going in vain as the labored breathing was falling silent. “Link…!”

Graham shook, ready to cry out for his friend when a blur flew across his eyes. Following the sight, he saw the familiar cave and began to tug. “G-Guybrush, there!!” 

Looking at Graham’s line of vision, Guybrush recognized the faint symbols along the entry. Link taught them that… it was the Fairy Fountain. “C’mon, we don’t have any time left.” He said and the two began to sprint towards the cave. 

Inside, they stepped from dirt to water, initially startled by the change but recalled that each fountain was different. In fact… Guybrush immediately took notice to the difference and began to slowly panic. “Fairies… they’re… they’re not here. They’re not here!”

Graham shook his head as he kneeled down so that Link’s feet was submerged. “It doesn’t matter, we need to try!”

“Right… you’re right.” Guybrush kneeled down too and soon the Hylian was surrounded by it… the water around him shifting from a pure blue to pink. 

“Further in.” Graham began to pull Link deeper in until only his head was up, only thanks to the pirate holding it up.

“B-but he’ll drown!”

“Guybrush… we don’t have much of a choice.” Graham’s voice shook. “Please…”

Biting his lip, he slowly let go of Link’s head, allowing the Hylian to be completely submereged in the water. They stood back, waiting for any signs that it worked as Guybrush was counting down the seconds. Thirty seconds… that’s how long most people can hold their breath. But soon the thirty seconds passed and he felt himself ready to dive in to help only to be held back by Graham.

“Graham, he’s drowning!”

“Guybrush–”

A loud splash startled the two as Link emerged from the pink pond, gasping for air and inadvertently causing Guybrush to let out a high pitch scream and Graham to fall backwards and into the water. 

Coughing up the water, Link looked around in confusion when he saw the two standing there… well, Guybrush helping a drenched Graham back up. 

“W-what happened? Where… where are we?” Link asked. 

Instead of getting an answer, he was tackled back into the water by the two adventurers as they held him tightly, shaking. 

“Don’t… scare me like that.” Graham shook. “Don’t scare me like that ever again.”

“But what did I do? Jump out of the water– ow!”

Guybrush broke the hug as he flicked Link’s ear and glared. 

“Sorry…” Link mumbled.

As much as he wanted to glare… Guybrush’s expression soften as he placed a hand on Link’s shoulder. “You… gave us a scare. And I think I can speak for both of us when I say that… well… heh, I can’t think of the right word right now. But seriously. Don’t ever emerge from the water as a shark ever again. That’s not funny.”

“Dying isn’t either?” Link smirked. 

“Goes without saying.” Graham lightly shoved the Hylian. “But hey, we got a bath out of this. I… think.”

“Poor timing.” Guybrush sighed.

“Never poor timing!” The archer posed triumphantly. “Anyways, we’ll explain everything later but let’s just… let’s find a town. I’ve made my quota with woods and near death experiences.”

The two blonds nodded in agreement and ventured off. 


	12. Home Made Pancakes

“C’mon, this way!” Graham urged as he ran ahead of the others through the open field. 

Through some form of miscommunication and getting lost, they found themselves in a new land… at least, new for them. Graham instantly recognized the mountain hills and the way the roads turned, smiling that for once he was able to help with directions. 

But why rush? He thought. They could always use a quick stop to properly recharge. And who better then in his own hometown?

“I thought you were from Daventry.” Link asked Graham who stopped and hopped in place waiting for them to catch up.

“I’m not, but my family- well, mostly my dad’s side, have all had a history of protecting the crown. So after we graduate Knight School, we look for jobs where kingdoms need knights.” Graham explained.

“So there is a kingdom here that isn’t affiliated with Davenport?” Guybrush then asked. “You’d think they would want more knights to protect themselves.”

“Daventry. But yeah, and I tried applying but it was all book.” Graham frowned a bit. “This kingdom hasn’t seen a war in centuries… so there isn’t a need for more knights exactly.” The archer shrugged, keeping his eyes open until he saw the farmhouse sitting peacefully against the blue sky and smiling. “There!”

They watched him rush off again and they quickly followed. 

Graham knocked on the door to a rhythmic pattern and jumped in place eagerly. Guybrush and Link looked at each other in confusion when they soon heard footsteps and a few locks being undone. The door opened wide and stood a slightly plump woman with greying hair who looked to be a foot shorter then Graham. And looking closer had matching eyes to the archer. Her face beamed as she recognized the lanky man and her arms quickly wrapped around him. 

“COOKIE!” She greeted cheerfully and held him tight, a small ‘oof’ escaped Graham but the grin was large as he held her close. 

“Hi mom!” 

“Mom?” Link’s eyes widen in surprise.

“Cookie?” Guybrush raised a brow.

Graham’s mom released him and patted her hands on her apron as the brunet stood beside her. “Mom, these are my friends, Link and Guybrush. Guys, my mom.” 

The two blonds looked at each other for a moment before Link broke the gaze to look back at the woman, extending his hand out. “Ah… it’s a pleasure to meet you, ma’am.” 

“Ha, pleasure is all mine.” She happily shook his hand, she extended it out again for Guybrush who happily took hold. “Oh, where are my manners, come in! Come in!” She moved to the side and gestured insistently to let them in, Graham didn’t need to be told twice nor did the others. 

The house wasn’t exactly small, but there was an air of humility to it. Portraits of people hung on the walls and potted plants were found around and about. Graham’s mother quickly made her way to the kitchen, a small hop in her step with apparent joy. “What brings you three all the way here? Are you also knights of Daventry?” She asked.

“Not exactly…” Guybrush rubbed the back of his neck.

“We got lost heading to Hyrule and somehow found our way back here.” Graham explained, joining her in the kitchen. “Do you need a hand?”

“Oh yes, thank you dear.” His mom smiled. “But Hyrule is a long way away from here… that’s a heck of a turnaround.”

“Yeah… yeah that one was um… my fault. Got a fake map.” Link admitted sheepishly as he could feel Guybrush’s gaze piercing him. 

“Well, as long as you boys are safe. Did you have breakfast yet?”

“Does a small fish count?” Guybrush asked.

“Small fish for all three of you or each of you had a small fish?”

“Former.” All three of them answered.

Graham scratched his cheek sheepishly as his mom looked at him. “Well, we can’t have that.” She sighed, a fierce determined look in her eyes flared and she pointed at Link.

“Grab some eggs.” She ordered. 

Link stood shift and nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”

She then pointed at Guybrush, “Fetch me some flour, it’s in the cabinet behind you.”

Guybrush saluted and rushed off. 

“Cookie, be a dear and grab me some chocolate chips.”

There could have been stars in his eyes and the brunet rushed in a blur of red to grab the chocolate chips. Link, Guybrush and Graham returned with the necessary ingredients and the woman was already mixing it all together into a batter. The blonds watched with curiosity while Graham was hopping in place.

“Alright, I gotta ask, what are you making?” Link asked. 

“Choco-chip pancakes.” She smiled, hearing Graham attempting to suppress a squeal. 

“It’s the best! You guys are going to love it!” He said eagerly.

“Ooooooh… so THAT choco-chip you keep mentioning about.” Guybrush smirked. 

“He talks about it?” Graham’s mother asked.

“In the highest regard.” 

“Aww, Cookie…” She pinched Graham’s cheek. “Alright, if you three can set the table, I’ll have this ready in a jiffy.” 

“Yes ma’am.” The three nodded and grabbed the utensils and plates to the table. The sounds of shuffling and cooking filled the house and soon the three sat in place. 

Graham’s mother smiled. “Pancakes are ready!” She walked over to them and began placing it down on their plates. One pancake… two… three…

Soon their plates were stacked with pancakes and the pirate and Hylian looked at each other baffled while Graham grinned from ear to ear. “Dig in!” Graham’s mother said as she took a seat as well. 

Guybrush shrugged and started to dig in as well as Link… and their eyes lit up.

They completely understood why Graham wouldn’t shut up about it. 


	13. Never Have We Ever

They were fortunate enough to be able to get a room for the night, and after inspecting the building for anything that could go bump in the night, gathering root beer to be safe, and a few snacks, the boys were able to have a proper sleep over that they felt otherwise denied from.

And with that, included slumber party games. 

It was Guybrush’s suggestion to play a round of “Never Have I Ever”, figuring it would be both entertaining as well as a great way to get to know one another better. 

Taking a bite from one of his snacks, Guybrush cleared his throat. “Alright, let’s see… never have I ever… hmm…” He tapped his chin in thought. “Oh! Never have I ever got a parrot drunk!”

Graham just blinked in confusion as Link stared up, trying to recall any events similar to what the pirate suggested. “Um… does getting a goron drunk count?” Link asked.

“Goron?” Graham stared before realizing. “Oh! Those rock-based creatures!”

“Yeah… no. Parrot.” Guybrush shrugged, “Really? Just me?”

“Drink up.” Link smirked as the pirate sighed and took a sip. “Graham, your turn.”

“Hmm… let’s see…” Graham shook his leg. “Never have I ever… been hit on… by… a mermaid.”

“Do zoras count?” Link asked.

“Yeah. They’re kinda like merfolks.” Guybrush figured.

Link and Guybrush stared at each other and took a sip.

“Whoa whoa whoa, BOTH of you!?” Graham stared dumbfounded, especially towards Guybrush. “Explain!”

“Remember my first mate? Winslow?” Guybrush began, “Well, his special someone is a merfolk and their kind tends to be… flirtatious. Anemone flirted with me a bit before they went steady with Winslow.”

Graham nodded and then looked at Link. “Yeah… um… I had a few zoras flirt… I didn’t really realize it until Princess Zelda kinda… kinda pointed it out to me.”

“Bluntly?” Graham raised a brow.

“Hmm… more like playful teasing, but yeah.” Link nodded, side-eyeing Guybrush who was snickering and saying ‘I know that feeling’. "Okay, so… my turn, yeah?”

Graham and Guybrush nodded.

“Okay… never have I ever dreamt of my crush.” Link said, staring at the two slowly beginning to blush. 

“R-right for the kill, huh?” Guybrush chuckled. “But um… yeah.”

“Elaine?” Link smirked, enjoying seeing Guybrush turning further red and taking a sip. 

“I think it’s cute that you still dream of her this far into your marriage.” Graham complimented, the red blush still on his cheeks.

“What about you?” Guybrush asked. “You’re blushing too. Who is it? Are they cute?”  

“…K-kinda… yeah…” Graham mumbled. 

“Ooooh, who is it?” Link smiled mischievously, causing Graham to choke slightly on his drink. Guybrush just watched the obvlious Hylian ask and the ever awkward archer and just smiled. 

“I’ll give you three guess, Link.” Guybrush smiled. “Here’s a free hint: a kni–OOF!” 

Link jumped back slightly as Graham tackled Guybrush.


	14. How to Date

Guybrush was perusing through a kiosk filled with flowers, admiring the sight that made the kiosk stand out from the rest in the bustling marketplace. Glancing over to his side, he spotted Link and Graham browsing around together at the food stall and grabbing free samples as well as an extra few for, he’d imagine, for later. It did admittedly smell good the closer they got to him.

“Here.” Link extended his hand out, giving the pirate some of the samples.

“Oh, ah… thanks.” Guybrush smiled, taking a hold of it and nibbling on it.

“What were you looking at?” Link asked, already finished with his own samples. 

“Ah, just some flowers.” He shrugged, “It reminded me of Elaine…”

“Elaine… your wife, right?” Graham remembered. “Which one reminded you of her?”

“Well, all of them? I… heh, I can never remember her favorite so I usually get her a medley of flowers on special occasions.” Guybrush recalled fondly. “Personally, I’m fond of the tulip… the reddish orange one especially since it looks a bit like her hair color.”

“Aww, how sweet.” The archer smiled. He forgot that for all that smart-ass retort and questionable methods, the man was a hopeless romantic at heart. “Hey um… Guybrush?”

“Mm-hmm?” Guybrush looked over, his mouth occupied with the entire sampler. 

“Ah… h-how… um…” Graham scratched his cheek, trying to word his question, “How do you keep… you know? That is, I mean… um…” He quickly glanced at Link for help who just shrugged. “Ah… romance?”

Guybrush stared before raising a brow. “You mean how me and Elaine have our relationship work?” 

“…Kinda?” Link finally muttered. “Maybe… yes?”

The pirate stared at the two, recalling that between the three of them, he was the only one in a relationship, and married at that. He laughed as the two blushed. 

“Okay, well…” He flicked the toothpick away. “For starters, what would you like to know? It’s ah… it’s a bit of a lesson.”

“Um… let’s start with the basics, so uh… l-let’s say dating.” Graham figured. “Like, what do you do exactly? I saw Wente once set up a picnic but then he um… was stung by bees.”

Graham decided to neglect how the bee stings were entirely his fault.

“That sounds like one of my anniversaries.” Guybrush recalled fondly, disregarding the confused look from Link’s direction. “Well, a picnic is usually a good start for a date. It’s personal, one on one, no interference from waiters or any drunks… plus it can be really romantic in the right time of day. Personally, I prefer, say, sunset to nighttime? Sun setting gives a nice warm glow and then the stars start to pop up… then the way her eyes glisten to the candles that you have set up and the fireflies…” He looked to be in thought and gave that warm smile the two realized was almost always appearing whenever he thought of his wife. 

“Guybrush?” Link cleared his throat.

“Huh?” Guybrush blinked and realized he was rambling, shaking his head. “A-anyways, a good date tip from me to you is to get a bouquet of flowers.”

“Wouldn’t there be bees?” Link asked.

“That’s why you get it from a shop.” Guybrush answered unamused, and pointed at the kiosk behind himself. “Personally, a medley of flowers is your best bet if it’s a first date. That way you can learn about the other person’s favorite and it’s a great conversation starter. Plus, it makes you look extremely romantic.”

“Oooh…” The two looked in awe. 

“Next lesson, smooth talking.” Guybrush then said. “There’s a difference between complimenting someone and coming off as a total sleaze.”


	15. Friends Meet Friends

The two stood in silence staring at the other two as Graham stood in the middle beaming with joy glancing back and forth between the four men in beside both his sides.

“Guybrush, Link… this is Acorn and Whisper.” The brunet gestured to the shiny and hulking knights. “Acorn, Whisper… this is Link and Guybrush Threepwood.”

“Graham, have they not heard of me? WHISPER?” The shiny knight sounded appalled. “Surely you jest!”

“Ah… I’m not… all that familiar with knights around these parts.” Guybrush admitted, rubbing the back of his neck. “But Graham talked about you before if that helps anything?”

“So you ARE a fan of Whisper!” Whisper sounded delighted. Guybrush just sighed. 

“Do you always speak in the third person?” Guybrush muttered.

Link, meanwhile, just stared upward at the lumbering figure that was, as he figured, Acorn. The Hylian just leaned slightly towards Graham, his eyes still locked on Acorn. “Are you sure he’s not a Goron?” Link whispered.

Graham stared up at the knight and scratched his cheek. “Hmmm, yeah. Yeah I’m sure. By the way, he’s the one I asked to make you that scarf.”

“Wait, really?” Link glanced from Graham back to Acorn, pulled on the blue scarf that was draped around his neck and looked to the other man. “You made this?”

“Of course I did.” Acorn placed his hands on his hips. “One of my finest works too, never had knit so thinly and quickly, but I’m glad to see you kept it well maintained.”

Link smiled up at Acorn. “I never got to the chance to thank you properly then. It’s really excellent quality.”

“Aw, you’re too kind.” Acorn sounded pleased. 

“You’re a PIRATE?!” Whisper yelled, hovering uncomfortably close over Guybrush. “Graham! How could you become a PIRATE over a KNIGHT?!”

“Graham? Help?” Guybrush looked over at Graham pleadingly.

“Oh boy…” Graham scratched his forehead. “Whisper, it’s a long story… but one I think you might enjoy over some pie.”

“I would love to hear this.” Acorn chuckled.

“It’s good.” Link laughed alongside the bigger knight.


	16. Keep Quiet

The three were sneaking passed the heavily guarded fortress, as to why none of them could recall exactly thanks in particular to the mad-dash of fighting frenzy the three of them found themselves in earlier.

They were lucky to get out by just the skin of their teeth 

Standing ahead of them in the shadows, Link stopped behind a wall an gestured to Graham and Guybrush to keep quiet. He leaned slightly over and looked around, listening carefully to the surroundings trying to catch any sounds of boots or any approaching enemies.

Guybrush, just behind Link, looked around as a second pair of eyes for the Hylian as he figured the more help, the better.

Link’s ears twitch at the sound of shuffling feet, looking slightly over his shoulder spotting the brunet dragging his feet and breathing heavily. “Graham, you need to pick up your feet. We need to be as quiet as possible.” Link whispered. 

Because of the dark lighting, he could only see a silhouette of the archer, but he was able to see a nod. 

Turning around, he saw a clearing and gestured for the two to follow as they sprinted quickly across to the other side and back into the shadows, Link stopped by the wall, making sure Guybrush and Graham made it across safely and leaned over to verify if they were spotted or not. The problem was that he couldn’t hear clearly because of Graham’s heavy labored breathing.

“Graham, c’mon, it wasn’t that bad.” Guybrush scolded in a whisper.

“S… sorry…” Graham barely managed to mutter. “I’ll… try to be quiet…”

Guybrush glanced over from the archer back to Link whose ears seemed to be twitching, listening closely and looked at the opposite direction where the exit was just a sprint away. A good distraction should do the trick but it didn’t appear to be needed.

Link leaned further in to listen, being able to hear clearly after Guybrush spoke to Graham.

“Alright… coast is clear.” Link ascertained. “How’s it looking on your end, Guybrush?”

“I’m not seeing any guards, I’m guessing they’re dealing with the tussle from earlier.” Guybrush whispered, just to be certain.

“Good, let them be on the other side.” The Hylian sighed. He frowned and crossed his arms, realizing they were short one particular voice. He looked over to where the archer was… 

Or rather… was SUPPOSE to be, when he saw the wall stain with a dark color. He followed the trail and saw Graham on the floor, holding onto his side that was the same color.

“Graham!” Link gasped, moving quickly over to Graham and kneeling down, seeing his hand covered in blood and barely breathing, unaware of Guybrush sitting on Graham’s other side looking at the wound, frowning. “Guybrush, what happened?!” 

“H-He’s been shot…” The pirate realized. “Link, we need to get him out of here fast. He can still be saved.”

Link simply nodded and helped the pirate pick up Graham who only let out a weak moan in pain, rushing out of the fortress as quickly as possible. 


	17. A Swig

“Right this way, guys.” Guybrush opened the door to the smoke heavy, loud and somehow colorful room that was the Scumm Bar. 

He promised them for a while that he would take them to best bar he knew as well as the one bar that kickstarted his career and life into Piracy. And yet, it was so apparent to the Mighty Pirate™ just how much the two knights stuck out like a horrible sore thumb.

It was a good thing that everyone here was too drunk to notice.

He guided them to an empty table and managed to flag down a server to grab him three drinks.

“So this was where it happened?” Graham asked, looking around the room while Link stared with a horrified concern at the pirate hanging from the chandelier and spinning.

“Yep!” Guybrush nodded. “Over there was once a private room that was exclusive to these three guys that deemed who was or wasn’t worthy of being a pirate by solving the three trials.”

“You need to do that to be a pirate?” Link asked, breaking his gaze from the light to Guybrush.

“Eh, looking back at it… probably not. But I felt like I had to at the time.” Guybrush shrugged.

“Why isn’t it a private room anymore?” Graham then asked, noting the now very open space where one of the pirates was currently passed out in front of his pretzels… which he now wanted.

“Well, it’s a complicated story, but basically the place got renovated after um… multiple ownerships.” The blond winced.

Link glared at him. “Why do I feel like you were involved, Guybrush…”

“Erm…”

“Guybrush…” Graham then glared at him. “What did you do?”

“Nothing!” The pirate defended himself. “Well, at least… the first time nothing. Or the third time–”

“What did you do the second time?” Link questioned.

“I… um… may have started a fire?” Guybrush sheepishly smiled.

“You WHAT?!” The two shouted as Guybrush hunched.

“How– WHY did you start a fire?!” Graham sounded horrified. 

“Because it was a tourist trap and I needed a map that was inside a wax painting.”

“Not an excuse!” The archer pointed a finger at him accusingly. 

“Well I couldn’t exactly just TAKE the darn thing!” Guybrush defended himself.

“You could have asked!” 

Link saw the server coming with a tray with three mugs and placed it down in front of them before walking away, giving a small nod in thanks. He picked up the drink and glanced down at it, tilting his head slightly and sniffing it before recoiling back. “Ugh, what is this?”

“Grog.” Guybrush answered, thankful for the change of subject. “You said you wanted to have the authentic pirate-y experience–”

Link shook his head, “I didn’t… Graham did. I just said I wanted to see the Pirate Life.”

“How dare you toss me like that.” Graham stared.

“ANYWAYS.” The pirate sighed and picked up his drink, “To an authentic experience with the best friends a guy could ask for.”

“Cheers!” Graham and Link cheered, clinking their mugs against Guybrush before taking a swig.

Guybrush lowered his mug with a mischievous look on his face as he saw both Link and Graham going pale and quickly spitting out the drink in disgust and asking if the other is still alive and various insulting questions. But he just laughed.

It was worth it.  


End file.
